Attention Families of Children with Disabilities Ages 6-21

We are excited to announce an important initiative aimed at supporting families of children with disabilities, especially those requiring constant care and supervision with challenging behaviors. The Department of Developmental Services (DDS) recognizes the complex needs of these children and the significant impact on their parents.
To better support these families, we have partnered with DDS to form Family Focus Groups. The goal of these groups is to gather input from families regarding their service experiences, including barriers in accessing services, and to identify additional services that may be needed to meet their child’s needs. Families selected to participate will receive a stipend.

Ideally, we would like to hear from families who:

• Have children and youth between the ages of 6 and 21 with complex/behavioral and/or high-support needs.
• Are advocating, struggling, and/or are fearful to come forward.

Families selected to participate will be culturally diverse, inclusive, and reflective of the local regional center community.

Families interested in sharing their experiences and ideas about unmet service needs will need to complete an interest form/application available in eight different languages by August 9, 2024.

Family Focus Group – Interest Forms:

• English
• Spanish
• Chinese
• Hmong
• Khmer
• Russian
• Tagalog
• Vietnamese

Please direct any questions regarding the interest form or submissions to SafetyNet@dds.ca.gov.

We thank you for your consideration!